15 March 2024

Free For All Friday - No. 801 by Steve

We went away for just one night this week. I find these days that it doesn't matter how many nights you are away for, there is still the same amount of 'base kit' you need to take with you and the multiple of shirts etc is the only variable. 

I started to make a hand written list but gave up very quickly when I realised that this was getting silly and quickly reverted to one of my pre-printed travel lists that I can quickly cross out things that I wouldn't need to take as it was a 'local' over night stay.  

Those lists have been 'fine tuned' over the years for most trips that I make, I just adjust the clothing required to suit the length of our stay, but there are many basic things I need to take now with medication, toiletries and electronic accessories dominating the list!

We had a lovely stay in Tours seeing friends and celebrating my birthday. 

Do you use your organiser to plan your travel and luggage?  Of course it is Friday (checks calendar!) so please feel free to discuss anything else Filofax related. 

9 comments:

  1. Printed lists (based on Blake/Morton templates) are one of the things that I find a Personal size page is ideal for. A5 is a bit big and the font size when reduced to Pocket too small! I’ve had long-evolving packing lists for different trips - day rucksack, overnight rucksack, day bag (rail trip), hand luggage (flight), hold luggage, bike panniers, lightweight camping, multi-day camping, skiing trip, sailing trip, etc.

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    1. I did print some in A6 size which is a bit of a compromise between Personal and A5 I guess. But what ever size you use doesn't matter. It's not forgetting to take something that counts!

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  2. I used to write a list in my personal sized metropol but tbh I'd write it then when packing find it's not very useful as I'm picking stuff from around the various storage locations. In the end I realised I never made very good lists in then first place. That's when I learnt that my travel packing system is to think of requirements as I go. If I want to feel more organised I collect everything and lay it out on the bed, but that's not very often.

    I feel the use of filofax trip, kit lists before packing does more to get me excited about the trip. A kind of mental preparation to get my mind around where I'm going and what I'm going to be doing there. The actual kit selection needs to be more last minute for me. I suspect I need a bit more chaos to work efficiently and effectively. It concentrates my mind. A bit more stressful I reckon but it works for me.

    It's interesting to me how I use filofax to get my head around the trip purpose but not the practical aspect such as kit and luggage. I've never thought about how I use my filofax for trips before.

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  3. Just wondering, do people create pre-printed inserts for a lot of their lives or activities?

    I use diaries and various contacts sheets but mostly it's just paper in lined or dotted. A blank sheet to make it my own, unique each time. Reinventing the wheel each time but it's a process for me I guess. I think different inserts are great but I'm just don't see me using them.

    Although I did find a few A5 day planner inserts from this site that is test printed when I was getting my new printer with duplex working. I've found it useful on my busy days this week. Whatn started off as a tidy up and not wasting the print output turned into seeing a use under certain circumstances.

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    1. "In the year, 2525..."15 March, 2024 06:45

      I've gone back and forwards over the years, between incredibly detailed custom inserts which took hours to design, tweak, and then print, to just lined paper, and over time lean towards dotted pages, with a good ruler and some coloured ballpoints to customise the page. Dotted paper creates the appearance of columns, boxes, graph paper, or lines as needed, also uses fractionally less ink than solid lines.

      I do like a Filofax W2V diary insert, for logging events after they happened, and for ticklers (GTD) pencilled in, in advance. Like you, busy days sometimes need different paper and I have a few undated day "appointments" pages printed, which see use as needed and then get archived.

      I also like the look and efficient feel of checkbox To-Do Lists, NB Planner in the UK do them on coloured paper so I can code them to areas eg green for garden and yard, pink for health and fitness, etc, which saves having to use dividers. Can't beat that blank sheet feeling though.

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  4. "In the year, 2525..."15 March, 2024 06:33

    Does anyone know the approximate date at which Filofax release diaries for the coming year? I specifically want the Sunday start W2V for 2025, and for reasons which would be a bore to type let alone read, I'm keen to have it as soon as possible.

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    1. I bought my 2024 diary insert last July.

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  5. I too have printed my own travel list which I have laminated and punched to keep in my filofax. I use it all the time. Granted I have got a few posts it's stuck onto it now for things I added over time!

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  6. If we take the camper I don't use a full packing list as I keep duplicate items in the RV. I do list books, knitting, cards that I want to use while away. Matter-of-fact we head out tomorrow for AZ and it is the first trip after it has been winterized and idle for a few months. We did things a little different this year because of mice, and I have a list in my Reminders for the RV so I don't forget anything.

    If we go somewhere without the camper I use one of the lists I bought off Etsy.

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